Photo by Ryan West
“Dear White People” is dramedy series on Netflix based on the 2014 film of the same name, which follows a diverse group of students at a predominantly white Ivy League college, who are navigating various forms of racial and other types of discrimination. Martinez plays the character ‘Wesley Alvarez’, who will be a love interest for one of the main characters in the upcoming season 2. Season 2 premieres May 4, 2018, and check out the trailer featuring Martinez: https://youtu.be/UbCQsA1g3K0.
In addition, Martinez recurs on The CW’s “Jane The Virgin” as ‘Rudy the P.A.’and is best known as ‘Marty’ on the NBC series “Heartbeat”. Additional acting credits include ABC’s “Speechless”, Disney’s “Good Luck Charlie”, Nickelodeon’s “iCarly” and the film “Senior Moment”.
Martinez was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. He fell in love with acting at a young age and joined the drama club at South Pasadena High School. He went on to attend college at UC Santa Barbara and earned a BFA in Acting. In his senior year, he earned an undergraduate research grant to do a self-study of anything he desired and chose puppetry. The research culminated into a short play that he wrote and directed, using different forms of puppetry.
Martinez started in the entertainment business during college, after mass mailing his headshot and resume to various agents. Soon thereafter, he was contacted by a few agents and ended up being signed by an agent at the former ACME Agency. After being signed with an agent during college, Martinez hit the ground running as soon as he graduated. While waiting for his agent to call with auditions that first summer, Martinez face painted at children’s birthday parties. He went on to book his very first professional acting job as a host job for the Disney Channel, where they flew him to Disney World to interview young celebrities and talk about the newest rides.
Along the way, Martinez performed with theater companies in Southern California including the Independent Shakespeare Company. He is a member of the Actor’s Equity Association and advocates for diversity in theatre and on-screen. He and his husband have set up a scholarship at UCLA, to benefit LGBT writers in the school of Theatre & Film. In addition, Martinez donates to The Odyssey Project in Santa Barbara, which seeks to change the lives of incarcerated youth through theatre. Martinez is currently gearing up for the theatre run of “Wood Boy Dog Fish” as Wood Boy at the Garry Marshall Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. https://www.rogueartists.org/woodboydogfish/
When not acting, Martinez loves to play the ukulele and dabbling in songwriting. He is a self-proclaimed “geek” and is a huge fanboy for Harry Potter, ‘Power Rangers and Steven Universe. Martinez stays active by riding his skateboard, running and doing yoga. When he has a free moment, he loves to restore old furniture, visiting flea markets and antique shops and shopping for vintage clothing.
Check out this absolutely fun interview with Rudy! We enjoyed his candor. Check out the interview below.
Hi, Rudy! It is such a pleasure to speak with you. Thank you for granting the interview. Congrats on having a recurring role on the hit Netflix dramedy series, “Dear White People.” Tell us about your role and character.
I play Wesley Alvarez, opposite DeRon Horton, who plays Lionel. Our characters meet at a party during Pride Night at Winchester University. Wesley is a bit of a geek. He’s really smart and into video games, to which Lionel is attracted to, being sort of a geek himself. Wesley and Lionel hit it off even though they’re both a little socially awkward. They don’t really fit into a specific box at Winchester and even within the LGBTQ circles, they don’t really feel comfortable. It’s a fun journey throughout the season with these two guys who find a lot of themselves in each other.
This is an incredible opportunity to touch on subjects many don’t discuss. It definitely raises awareness on cultural differences. How do you think the series can help dispel myths about other cultures?
For starters, I’m Latino and for a long time, I felt like I was an outsider. But I recently started learning about how my family has been here for generations. I think the series is a good opportunity to discuss what some people see as “other” and to highlight what being thought of in those terms means to people of color. Whether you’re a person of color who identifies with these characters, or someone exploring the concept of privilege, there are themes that can resonate with everyone.
How do you feel being part of such an incredible production?
It’s really special to be a part of this show. I was a fan of the original movie starring Tessa Thompson, and in fact, she makes a guest appearance on this season along with Lena Waithe, Todrick Hall, and so many more incredible people. I’ve also been getting a lot of nice messages from people who are happy to see more diversity and inclusion on television. Some people are just happy that I’m helping to tell a story that hits close to home for them and I’m proud to do that.
Let’s talk “Wood Boy Dog Fish.” You play Wood Boy at the Garry Marshall Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. It is written by Chelsea Sutton with Rogue Artists Ensemble and is directed by Sean T. Cawelti. The play has had several renditions and we heard that the new production of “Wood Boy Dog Fish” is more aggressive and immersive than previous versions. What are your thoughts on the production?
This production is surreal! Even though it’s a theatrical play it is also partly an immersive art installation, and it uses hyper theatrical effects that require the audience to wear 3D glasses at one point. The play is a modern grown-up version of Pinocchio. While it’s not like the Disney version we all grew up with, it still has a lot of the heart of the original story. It’s ultimately about a boy who is trying to find out where he belongs in the world.
Is the role a challenge to play?
Yes! This role is a huge challenge for me. I play the lead role of “Wood Boy” and I spend most of my time on stage manipulating a wooden puppet. The element of puppetry is an important illusion in this play and over time the audience doesn’t notice the puppeteer and the puppet becomes very real. I act, sing and dance through the puppet so the role is very demanding physically. I have to give the puppet life which takes a lot of practice, but it’s so rewarding when people tell me the puppet seemed so alive.
Where can people purchase tickets?
You can visit rogueartists.org or go to the Garry Marshall Theatre website at garrymarshalltheatre.org.
If there was one thing in the world you could change, what would it be and why?
That’s a great question! I’d want to change a lot of things, but I think so many problems could be solved if people had more compassion for each other. So that’s what I would change. Imagine, we could solve things like poverty and homelessness if we had the compassion to motivate us.
Complete this sentence, if I had an opportunity to do anything I want, I would do ___________.
I would do a project with The Muppets! I recently performed at the Jim Henson Company in a benefit supporting the Center for Puppetry Arts. Being up close to some of the Muppets and seeing them perform live, was a dream come true for me. I would love to work with them someday.
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Connect with Rudy:
Twitter: @RudyMartinezLA
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rudymartinezla/
Featured Image Credit: Ryan West.
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